Process for Continuous Coating Deposition and an Apparatus for Carrying Out the Process

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for continuously forming thin ceramic coatings on metal sheets, foils or wires. The apparatus having a reaction chamber, perforated nylon sheets, nylon bar guides, copper rods attached to a power supply, nylon collecting rods, and an inlet and an outlet. The reaction chamber is capable of containing an electrolytic solution. The copper rods are separately connected to the R, Y, or B phase of the power supply. Each phase is provided with two thyristors and the output of the thyristors is connected to the copper rods using current transformers. A process for continuously forming thin ceramic coatings on metal sheets, foils or wires is also provided.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a process for continuous coating deposition and an apparatus for carrying out the process. The invention more particularly relates to process for forming oxide based ceramic coatings on reactive metal and alloys sheets, foils and wires that are in the form of web in a continuous manner and an apparatus therefor. The films obtained according to the present invention have glossy surface finish, thermal and electrical insulation, chemical inertness, environmental inertness, surface cleaning ability, anti-dust sticking and have good scratch resistance. Further the process described in the present invention deposits the oxide ceramic films at a rapid rate and enhances the productivity to a great extent.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The metals like Al, Ti, Mg and their alloys are commercially and widely used in the engineering industries like automobile, aerospace, textile, petrochemical and crockery in the form of rods, bars, tubes, foils, sheets, wires, pipes, channels, sections, pulleys, cylinders, pistons etc. Apart from the specific promising properties and commercial availability that these materials have, the main reason for using these materials is its high strength to weight ratio. However, there exists a limitation to use these materials beyond a certain point; the limitation arises from the fact that these materials exhibit poor resistance to wear and tear, chemical attack and heat.

Traditionally, anodizing is employed to obtain coatings on Al-alloys. But the resultant coatings are found to be porous, weakly adherent to the substrate, thereby can not provide high level protection against wear & tear and corrosion. More over, coating deposition rates achieved are also low in the anodizing process.

Thermal spraying techniques like plasma spraying, high velocity oxy fuel spraying, detonation spraying are well developed and widely used by the engineering industry to produce large varieties of metallic, oxide, carbide and nitride based ceramic coatings. These coatings are essentially employed to combat various forms of wear and tear and corrosion thereby to enhance the service life of the components made of different metals and alloys. However, thermal spray techniques demand a high degree of pre coating and post coating operations which are often cost inductive. Size, shape and complexity in geometry of the engineering components do restrict the applicability of the thermal spray techniques. Moreover, these techniques demand high quality as well as costly powders such as Alumina, Alumina-Titania, Tungsten Carbide-Cobalt, Chromium Carbide-Nickel Chrome prepared by specially developed manufacturing routes such as sol-gel, atomization, fusing, sintering & crushing, chemical reduction and blending. Deposition efficiency of these powders is always much less than 100% thus requiring a special means of unused powder separation from the coating chamber. Since these coating techniques employ spraying of heated powder particles on to the relatively cold surfaces, often results in poor metallurgical bonding between the substrate and the coating. These coatings are often characterized by inherent porosity, micro cracks and higher levels of residual stresses which in turn lead to the failure of the coatings in the case of critical applications. Due to the associated coating deposition mechanism, the thermal spray techniques are not at all suitable to deposit thin films on sheets, foils and wires. Moreover, it is not practically possible to deposit thin coatings on thin sheets, foils and wires in a continuous manner.

Yet another field of research in the area of thin film deposition on sheets, foils & wires is by means of Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) and Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) techniques. However, due to the inherent nature of these processes wherein the overall coating deposition is significantly influenced by the ionic/atomic scale interactions with the surfaces being coated, the overall coating deposition rates are extremely low and production rates are very low. Besides the slow deposition nature of these processes, these techniques are also not suitable for coating deposition on a continuous scale on extremely larger/longer surface areas.

To overcome the above mentioned difficulties and limitations and the present day need for coatings exhibiting improved tribological, electrical, thermal and chemical properties and having higher density and excellent wear resistance, research work in the area of developing an improved micro arc oxidation process has gained importance globally.

There exist a good number of patents and publications which deal with the ceramic coating deposition processes on aluminum and its alloys. Some relevant literature on prior art on micro arc processes is referred to below.

According to U.S. Pat. No. 6,197,178, a three phase pure sinusoidal potential of 480V AC electrical power is supplied to aluminium alloy web and current densities between 20 and 70 A/dm² is applied. During the process, current density is maintained by moving the web relative to each other. An electrolyte with KOH, Na₂SiO₃ and Na₂O.Al₂O₃.3H₂O in the proportion of 2 gram per liter of de-ionized water is used. Temperature of the electrolytic bath is maintained between 25 degree C. and 80 degree C. The coating thickness achieved is reported to be in the range of 100 to 160 microns for a 30 minute processing time on cylindrical samples.

Although the resultant coatings were found to have strong adherence with the substrate no information is available with respect to the density and uniformity of the coatings achieved. Coating density is very important parameter in deciding the wear resistance of the resulting coatings.

In the invention cited above, the inventors used a pure sinusoidal voltage wave form without any waveform modification, while a sharply peaked-waveform makes a major contribution in providing a dense and hard coating. This is why the coatings obtained through the above mentioned process exhibit lower hardness i.e., 1200-1400 kg/mm². However, there is no mention of the application of the said process to deposit coatings on thin sheets, foils and wires and that too in a continuous manner

U.S. Pat. No. 5,616,229 granted to Samsonov et al. discloses a method forming a ceramic coating on valve metals. This method comprises application of at least 700V alternating current across the parts to be coated. Waveform modification is achieved through a capacitor bank connected in series between high voltage source and the metallic body to be coated. Waveform of the electric current rises from zero to its maximum height and falls to below 40% of its maximum height with in less than a quarter of full alternating cycle.

Electrolyte used in the above cited process contains 0.5 grams/liter NaOH, 0.5-2 grams/liter KOH. In addition, electrolyte also contains sodium tetra silicate for which there is no claim on the exact amount to be added. During the process, the electrolyte composition is changed by adding oxy acid salt of a alkali metal in the concentration range of 2 to 200 grams per liter of solution. The process has been demonstrated by coating an aluminium alloy known as Duralumin by employing 3 different electrolytic baths. However, in the process explained above there is no mention of maintaining any particular ratio between the alkali and metal silicate.

In the micro arc oxidation process, alkali is actually responsible for dissolving the coating where as the metal silicate is responsible for coating built up through poly condensation of silicate anions. Too high silicate concentration in the electrolyte causes higher coating built up especially at the sample edges rather than at the other portions of the sample thus resulting in a non-uniform coating. Hence, there is a need to maintain a certain degree of proportion between the alkali and metal silicate in order to end up with uniform and dense coatings. However, there is no mention of the application of the said process to deposit coatings on thin sheets, foils and wires and that too in a continuous manner.

In the process disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,616,229 it has been described a process wherein an average deposition rate of 2.5 micron per minute has been achieved. However, the thickness of fully melted inner layer is only 65 microns out of a total coating thickness of 100 microns. This indicates that this process can produce coatings comprising only 65% initial dense layer and remaining 35% external layer is porous with 4-6 no. of pores per sq. cm. area and an average pore diameter of 8-11 microns.

To make these coatings suitable for wear resistant applications, the external porous layer of sufficient thick needs to be completely removed by machining or grinding. Apart from the fact that these machining or grinding operations are costly, machining/grinding of coated parts of complex, non-symmetric shapes is extremely difficult and demands high degree of automated machinery and higher skill levels also. This effectively increases the cost of the coating per unit volume. However, there is no mention of the application of the said process to deposit coatings on thin sheets, soils and wires and that too in a continuous manner.

The prior art processes of micro arc oxidation processes though yielded thick dense, adherent coatings with higher coating deposition rates but failed to produce thin films on a continuous scale so as to coat several meters and kilometers long sheets or foils and wires where in it is essentially required to impart glossy surface finish, thermal and electrical insulation, chemical inertness, surface cleaning ability, environmental inertness, anti-dust sticking and have good scratch resistance to find potential applications in the field of decorative, insulation, anti-dust sticking applications.

Moreover, in the prior art, the process employed for coating metallic web has been discussed in detail, but nothing has been disclosed about the general apparatus employed for carrying out the coatings on thin sheets, foils and wires and that too in a continuous manner process in continuous scale.

According to the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,197,178, the apparatus employed for obtaining the coating consists of a chemically inert coating tank disposed with in an outer tank. The outer tank contains heat exchange fluid. Electrolyte from the inner tank is circulated through the heat exchange disposed in the outer tank itself. To remove heat from the heat exchange fluid, heat exchange fluid is withdrawn from the outer tank with the help of a pump and then passed through a forced air cooled heat exchanger. The operation of the exchangers was controlled automatically so as to maintain the desired temperature within the electrolyte bath. However, there exists a serious drawback with this kind of setup. When a component of larger size than that of the inner coating tank is to be coated, the dimensions of the inner tank are to be increased which in turn may demand for changing the outer tank dimensions as well. This makes the process more coast inductive.

In our Indian patent No. 2,09,817, the following process has been described:

A process for forming coatings on bodies of reactive metals and alloys which comprises electrolysing in a non-metallic, non-reactive, non-conductive reaction chamber containing an alkaline electrolytic solution having a pH >12 and conductivity >2 milli mhos, comprising potassium hydroxide, sodium tetra silicate and de-ionized or distilled water, immersing at least two metallic bodies selected from the reactive group of metals on which coatings have to be effected, the bodies being fixed in a movable manner, each body being connected to an electrode, passing wave multiphase alternating current across the said bodies by means of two back-back parallely connected thyristors for a period based on the desired thickness of the coating to be achieved, slowly increasing the current being supplied to the said bodies till the required current density is achieved, then maintaining the current at the same level throughout the process, the electric potential being further increased gradually to compensate the increasing resistance of the coating when the visible arcing at the surface of the immersed regions of the said bodies is noticed, regulating the composition of the electrolyte by measuring its pH and conductivity during the process by conventional methods, maintaining the temperature of the electroyte between the range of 4° C. to 50° C. and in keeping the electroyte in continuous circulation throughout the process.

The said patent also discloses an apparatus for carrying out the said process. The said apparatus disclosed in the said patent is shown in FIGS. A, B and C of the drawing accompanying this specification. In the drawings

FIG. A represents the front view of the coating apparatus for carrying out the process disclosed in the present invention.

FIG. B represents the front view of the main control panel for carrying out the process disclosed in the present invention.

FIG. C represents the front view of the remote control panel for carrying out the process disclosed in the present invention.

The apparatus for carrying out the process as disclosed in the said patent comprises a non metallic, non conductive, non-reactive chamber (1) (named as reaction chamber) housing at least two metallic bodies (2), the surfaces of which are to be coated, the bodies being connected to the electrical power carrying arm (3) provided with a height adjustable mechanism (4) an inlet (5) for the electrolyte provided at the bottom and an outlet (6) at the top of the chamber, on the panel of main controller (8) analog voltmeter (9) and ammeter (10) being provided to indicate the input voltage and current, a lever type electric power on/off (11) being provided, a potentiometer (12) provided for slowly increasing the current supply to the metallic bodies (2), contactor on/off (13), thyristor on/off (14) switches, manual/automatic voltage adjustment (15) and local/remote operation (16) selector switches being also provided, thyristor (not shown) and transformer (17) outputs being connected through the separate analog voltmeters (18) and ammeters (19), two separate digital temperature indicators (20) being attached to the panel of remote controller (21), the temperature of electrolyte at the inlet and outlet being measured through the thermocouples (not shown), an oscilloscope (22) attached to the remote controller (21) for monitoring the electrical potential and current waveforms during the process, digital voltmeter (23) and ammeter (24) attached to the remote control panel (21) being used to monitor the changes in the current and voltage during the coating process, the height of electrolytic column (7) in the reaction chamber (1) being adjusted through a dimmerstat (25) attached to the panel of remote controller (21) and an emergency stop button (26) being attached to the remote control panel (21) for terminating the electrical power supply to the bodies in the case of any emergency.

The drawbacks of the apparatus disclosed in our earlier Patent no. 2,09,817 are listed below:

-   -   1. The apparatus is not suitable for depositing thinner coatings         on large area surfaces     -   2. The apparatus is not suitable for depositing coatings on thin         foils, sheets and wires     -   3. The apparatus is suitable for depositing thicker coatings (85         to 95 microns as illustrated in Example 1 and Example 2         described in Patent no. 2,09,817) possesses quite rough surface         finish thereby the surface cleaning ability is poor and prone         for dust accumulation     -   4. The apparatus is not suitable for production scale as it is         merely batch type processing based on the design of electrolytic         bath and also by the way that the bodies to be coated are         arranged in the bath and consumes lot of time for fixing the         bodies to be coated     -   5. The apparatus works with only 2-phase electrical energy and         leaves the third phase unutilized therefore leads to electrical         imbalance in the electrical mains.

Hence, it can be seen that there exists a need for providing a process for depositing uniform, thin films on sheets, foils and wires so as to enhance surface finish, thermal and electrical insulation, chemical inertness, surface cleaning ability, anti-dust sticking and have good scratch resistance as well depositing in a continuous manner and also a apparatus for carrying out the process.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to propose a process for depositing uniform, adherent, thin ceramic films on sheets, foils and wires in a continuous manner without any interruption.

Another object of the present invention is to propose a process for protecting the sheets, foils and wires in particular made of aluminium and its alloys to protect them against thermal, chemical, electrical and environmental reactions.

Still another object of the present invention is to propose a process for depositing uniform, adherent, thin ceramic films on sheets foils and wires which is simple and economical.

Another object of the present invention is to propose an apparatus for carrying out the process for depositing uniform, adherent, thin ceramic films on sheets foils and wires on a raid production scale.

Yet another object of the present invention is to propose an apparatus for carrying out the process without having a transformer in the electrical circuit so that the electrical waveforms modified by thyristors are not distorted and therefore the coatings deposited are more uniform and adherent.

Still another object of the present invention is to propose an apparatus for carrying out the process where in all the 3-phases of the power supply are being properly used for coating deposition so that the production rates are higher and electrical imbalances are minimized.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

The above object of the present invention are achieved by providing a process involving electro-thermal and electro-chemical oxidation of bodies in the form of sheets foils or wires that continuously moves in an alkaline electrolytic solution. In its broadest term, the present invention provides a new process for continuously electrolytically oxidizing metallic sheets, foils and wires.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION WITH REFERENCE TO ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

The present invention will be more fully understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein,

FIG. D represents the schematic diagram of the apparatus of the present invention.

Accordingly, the present invention provides and apparatus for continuously forming thin ceramic coatings on metal sheets, foils or wires hereafter collectively referred as metallic web which comprises a reaction chamber (1) made up of mild steel tank both inside and outside line with Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP) for enhanced safety and to avoid any leakage of electrical energy, the reaction chamber (1) being capable of containing an alkaline electrolytic solution (2) comprising potassium hydroxide, sodium tetra silicate in de-ionized or distilled water, the reaction chamber (1) being provided with perforated nylon sheets (3), the sheets being attached to each other at each corners and being remove ably fixed and placed along the longitudinal walls of the reaction chamber (1), the nylon sheet (3) being also provided with three nylon bar guides (4) as well as three copper rods (5) being able to rotate freely, each of the copper rods (5) having a circular geometry and being separately connected to the R, Y, and B phases of power supply, by means of high conductivity copper clamps (8) having circular inner geometry, each phase (R, Y and B Phases) being provided with two back-to-back parallel connected thyristors (6), the outputs of the thyristors (6) being connected to each of the copper rods (5) using three current transformers (CTs) (7), three collecting nylon rods (9) each of which is capable of rotation by the drive means (10) provided for collecting the metallic web after being coated being attached at the top left portion of the nylon sheet (3), the chamber (1) also having an inlet (11) for the electrolyte provided at the bottom of the reaction chamber (1) and the two out lets (12) for the electrolyte provided on the opposite site relative to inlet side at the top of the reaction chamber (1).

By changing the location of the freely rotating nylon bars guides (4) either vertically or horizontally in the bath, it is possible to change the total surface area of the metallic web being coated without changing the basic design of the reaction chamber. This can be done by using the perforated nylon sheet (3) which permits the accommodation of more number of nylon bar guides (4) so that the webs to be coated can be passed in a zigzag manner to increase the residence time of the bodies in the bath thus permits increasing the contact area of the metallic web which is to be coated with the electrolyte without necessitating any other design changes to the reaction chamber (1) thereby the overall productivity increases significantly and the rated power of the equipment is fully utilized. The coated web can be moved through the electrolyte solution (2) by drive means acting on one or more of the copper rods (5), collecting nylon rods (9) capable of rotated at a preset rpm by employing a drive (10) attached to the outer frame of reaction chamber (1) with the help of a conventional reduction gear system, the linear velocity of the metallic web or in other words the residence time of the web inside the bath is controlled by adjusting the rpm of the drive.

According to another feature of the invention there is provided a process for forming coatings on metal sheets, foils or wires hereafter collectively referred as metallic web which comprises immersing at least three metallic web selected from the reactive group of metals on which coatings have to be effected, in a alkaline electrolytic solution having a pH >12 and conductivity >2 milli mhos, comprising potassium hydroxide, sodium tetra silicate in de-ionized or distilled water contained in the reaction chamber (1) of the device as defined above, passing wave multiphase alternating current across the said web by means of the back-back parallely connected thyristors for a period bases on the desired thickness of the coatings to be achieved, slowly increasing the current being supplied to the said web till the required current density is achieved, the flow of the electrolyte being in the direction perpendicular to the direction of the moving metallic web in such a way that the cross flow is attained for effective heat dissipation in the reaction chamber, maintaining the current at the same level throughout the process, the electric potential being further increased gradually to compensate the increasing resistance of the coating when the visible arcing at the surface of the immersed regions of the said web is noticed, regulating the composition of the electrolyte by measuring its pH and conductivity during the process by conventional methods, maintaining the temperature of the electrolyte between the range of 4 degree C. to 50 degree C. and keeping the electrolyte in continuous circulation throughout the process, the coated web being removed by taking out the perforated nylon sheets from the reaction chamber.

The electrolytic solution (2) enters the reaction chamber (1) through the inlet (11) provided at the bottom of reaction chamber (1) and leaves the reaction chamber (1) through two outlets (12) provided on the opposite side relative to inlet side at the top of the reaction chamber (1). A 3-phase electrical power is supplied through a two back-to-back parallel connected thyristors (6) provided for each phase (R, Y and B Phases) are employed for modifying the current and voltage waveforms. All the three phases of modified wave electrical power is then passed through three metallic webs to be coated leading to enhanced production rate and minimizes electrical imbalances in the electrical mains. Three current transformers (CTs) (8) consisting of x, y, z and common point c are provided to the R, Y and B phases in the manner to separately measure the magnitude of current flowing in the three phases and the resultant averaged electrical signal is fed to the thyristor block (6) so that the constant current supply is provided throughout the coating deposition process.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the electrolyte used may contain potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in the preferred ratio of 2:1. The web on which the deposition is to be made may be selected from the reactive group of metals consisting of Al, Ti, Mg, Zr, Ta, Be, Ge, Ca, Te, Hf, V and their binary, ternary and multi-constituent alloys with elements like Cu, Zn, Mg, Fe, Cr, Co, Si, Mn, Al, Ti, Mg, Zr, Ta, Be, Ge, Ca, Te, Hf, V, W.

The material of web is allowed to move at a preset velocity by adjusting the speed of the drive (10). The linear velocity of the web is calculated based on the residence time in the bath required for depositing the required film thickness. The flow of electrolyte is in the direction perpendicular to the direction of the moving web in such a way that the cross flow is attained for effective heat dissipation in the reaction chamber. The flow rate of electrolyte in liters per minute is calculated based on the surface area of the web being coated in such a way that the ratio of total surface area (in sq. cm) to the flow rate (in liters per minute) is maintained between 0.1 and 1.2 so as to maintain the constant temperature of the bath. The electrolyte is circulated through an air cooled heat exchanger system so that the bath temperature is maintained constant. Accordingly, the cooled electrolyte enters the reaction chamber through the inlet (11) provided at its bottom and the hot electrolyte leaves through the outlets (12) from the top of the chamber. Two back-to-back parallel connected thyristors provided for each phase (R, Y and B Phases) are employed both for modifying the current and voltage waveforms. The firing angle of the thyristors is based on the feedback signal obtained by collecting the average value of electrical current passing through each individual phase and using this average value as a feedback signal thus maintaining the constant current supply throughout the process. The modified wave electrical power is passed through at least three web to be coated or multiples of 3 webs. The magnitude of current is based on the contact surface area of the body to be coated with the electrolyte. The total time of power supply is based on the total length (in meters) of the web (sheet, foil or wire) being coated divided by the linear velocity (meters/second) of the body in the bath.

By carrying out the process as described above, it is possible to obtain thin films on of predetermined thickness in the range of 0.25 to 10 microns on sheets and foils having a wide ranging widths from 10 cm to 500 cm, and wires of varying diameters from 0.02 cm to 2.0 cm and over a total length of several kilometers without any interruption providing superior quality coating and enhanced production rates. The thin films thus obtained by employing the above described process have exhibited glossy surface finish, thermal and electrical insulation chemical-intertness, surface cleaning ability, anti-dust sticking and good scratch resistance. Further the thin films produced by this method are adherent, smooth and uniform than the coatings produced in the prior art.

The details of the invention are given in the Examples given below which are provided for illustrating the invention and therefore should not be construed to limit the scope of the present invention.

Example 1

Three high purity aluminium foils of each 68 mm width, 30 micron thickness and 500 meter long dimension are connected to the output of the power supply. The total surface area in contact with the electrolyte is adjusted to be about 2100 cm² and the 3-phase current of 210 A is passed through each web and is maintained constant throughout the process. The surface area of the web in contact is adjusted by adjusting the location of the nylon bars. Electrolyte containing potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in the ratio of 2:1 (4 g/l potassium hydroxide and 2 g/l sodium tetra silicate) mixed in de-ionized water is circulated through the reaction chamber throughout the process. The electrolyte flow rate of 250 liters per minute is maintained throughout the process. The rpm of the drive is set at 550 revolutions per minute so that a linear velocity of 2.2 m/min. is maintained constant throughout the process. The process is continued for a total duration of 3 hrs 50 minutes to coat a total foil of length equal to 1.5 kilometers resulting in deposition of 0.5 micron thick film on a total surface area of 10,20,000 square centimeters. The films formed are found to have excellent adhesion, glossy surface finish, and high degree of uniformity without leaving any uncoated areas, without any surface defects. In addition, the deposited films were found to be decorative, thermally and electrically isolative, chemically inert, exhibited easy surface cleaning ability, anti-dust sticking and environmentally non-reactive.

Example 2

Nine nos. of electrical grade aluminium spools each containing wires of 4 mm diameter, 1000 meter (1 kilo meter) long dimension are connected to the output of the power supply. The total surface area in contact with the electrolyte is adjusted to be about 2260 cm² and the 3-phase current of 225 A is passed through each web and is maintained constant throughout the process. The surface area of the web in contact is adjusted by adjusting the location and also by placing more number of nylon bars. In order avoid the lateral movements; the wire is passed through individual non-metallic guides attached to nylon bars so that any possibility of electrical short circuit is completely eliminated. Electrolyte containing potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in the ratio of 2:1 (4 g/l potassium hydroxide and 2 g/l sodium tetra silicate) mixed in de-ionized water is circulated through the reaction chamber throughout the process. The electrolyte flow rate of 1200 liters per minute is maintained throughout the process. The rpm of the drive is set at 550 revolutions per minute so that a linear velocity of 2.7 m/min. is maintained constant throughout the process. The process is continued for a total duration of 6 hrs to coat a total foil of length equal to 9 kilometers. The average film thickness is found to be 1.0 micron. The films formed are found to have excellent adhesion, glossy surface finish, high degree of uniformity without leaving any uncoated areas, without any surface defects. In addition, the deposited films were found to be decorative, thermally and electrically isolative, chemically inert, exhibited easy surface cleaning ability, anti-dust sticking and environmentally non-reactive.

Example 3

Three aluminium alloy sheets having 136 mm width, 0.2 mm thickness has been subjected to the similar process as described in example 1. The surface area of the web in contact is adjusted by adjusting the location of the nylon bars. Electrolyte containing potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in the ratio 2:1 (4 g/l potassium hydroxide and 2 g/l sodium tetra silicate) mixed in de-ionized water is circulated through the reaction chamber throughout the process. The electrolyte flow rate of 250 liters per minute is maintained throughout the process. The rpm of the drive is set so that a linear velocity of 0.22 m/min. is maintained constant throughout the process. The process is continued for a total duration of 3 hrs 50 minutes to coat a total foil of length equal to 1.5 kilometers resulting in deposition of 5 micron thick film on a total surface area of 10,20,000 square centimeters. The applied current, electrolyte flow rate and treatment time were calculated accordingly and the films of 5 micron thickness were successfully deposited. The films were found to be uniform, homogeneous, environmentally non-reactive, electrically and thermally isolative. Further more the films formed have exhibited good scratch resistance as well.

It is apparent to a person reasonable skilled in the art that modifications and changes can be made within the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly such modifications and changers are also covered within the scope of the present invention.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

-   -   1. The films obtained by the process using the apparatus of the         present invention are uniform, exhibits glossy surface and well         bonded with the substrate.     -   2. The sheets, foils and wires prepared by the process using the         apparatus of the present invention can be directly used for         decorative, automobile, space, mild corrosion, anti-dust         sticking, glossy/matte finishing, insulation, mild chemical         resistant applications.     -   3. The process using the apparatus described permits the         continuous coating formation without intermediately stopping the         process on the web of several kilometers long.     -   4. The process using the apparatus disclosed in the present         intention permits the rapid rate formation of thin films on         sheets, foils and wires.     -   5. The overall cost of film deposition on the web offered by the         present invention is negligibly low compared to the coatings         produced by the process hitherto known.     -   6. The web in widely differing widths and thicknesses in the         case of sheets and foils or with different diameters in the case         of wires can be treated without any design changes in the         apparatus disclosed in the present invention.

It is to be noted that the present invention is susceptible to modifications, adaptations and changes by those skilled in the art. Such variant embodiments employing the concepts and features of this invention are intended to be within the scope of the present invention, which is further set forth under the following claims:— 

1-5. (canceled)
 6. An apparatus for continuously forming thin ceramic coatings on metallic web which comprises a reaction chamber, wherein the reaction chamber is capable of containing an alkaline electrolytic solution, the reaction chamber being provided with perforated nylon sheets, the nylon sheets being attached to each other at each corner and being removably fixed and placed along the longitudinal walls of the reaction chamber, the nylon sheet being provided with three nylon bar guides and three copper rods, wherein the copper rods are able to rotate freely, each of the copper rods having a circular geometry and being separately connected to an R, Y, or B phase of a power supply by means of high conductivity copper clamps having a circular inner geometry, each phase (R, Y or B Phase) being provided with two back-to-back parallely connected thyristors, the outputs of the thyristors being connected to each of the copper rods using three current transformers (CTs), three collecting nylon rods provided for collecting the metallic web after being coated, wherein each collecting nylon rod is capable of rotation by a drive means and is attached at the top portion of the nylon sheets, the reaction chamber also having an inlet for the electrolytic solution provided at the bottom of the reaction chamber and two outlets for the electrolytic solution provided on the opposite side relative to inlet side at the top of the reaction chamber.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the reaction chamber is comprised of a mild steel tank lined both inside and outside with Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP).
 8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the electrolytic solution comprises potassium hydroxide and sodium tetrasilicate in de-ionized or distilled water.
 9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the metallic web is metal sheets, foils, or wires.
 10. A process for forming coatings on metal sheets, foils or wires hereafter collectively referred as metallic web which comprises immersing at least three metallic webs, selected from a reactive group of metals on which coatings have to be effected, in an alkaline electrolytic solution comprising potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in de-ionized or distilled water and having a pH >12 and conductivity >2 milli mhos, and contained in a reaction chamber, passing wave multiphase alternating current across said webs by means of back-to-back parallely connected thyristors for a period based on the desired thickness of the coatings to be achieved, slowly increasing the current being supplied to said webs until the required current density is achieved, moving the metallic webs through the electrolytic solution, flowing the electrolytic solution in the direction perpendicular to the direction of the moving metallic webs such that cross flow is attained for effective heat dissipation in the reaction chamber, maintaining the current at the same level throughout the process, further increasing gradually the electric potential to compensate for increasing resistance of the coating when visible arcing at the surface of the immersed regions of said webs is noticed, regulating the composition of the electrolytic solution by measuring its pH and conductivity during the process using conventional methods, maintaining the temperature of the electrolytic solution between the range of 4° C. to 50° C., keeping the electrolytic solution in continuous circulation throughout the process, and removing the coated webs from the reaction chamber.
 11. The process as claimed in claim 10, wherein the electrolytic solution contains potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in the ratio of 2:1.
 12. An apparatus for continuously forming thin ceramic coatings on metal sheets, foils or wires hereafter collectively referred as metallic web which comprises a reaction chamber comprised of a mild steel tank lined both inside and outside with Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP), wherein the reaction chamber is capable of containing an alkaline electrolytic solution comprising potassium hydroxide and sodium tetra silicate in de-ionized or distilled water, the reaction chamber being provided with perforated nylon sheets, the nylon sheets being attached to each other at each corner and being removably fixed and placed along the longitudinal walls of the reaction chamber, the nylon sheets being provided with three nylon bar guides and three copper rods, wherein the copper rods are able to rotate freely, each of the copper rods having a circular geometry and being separately connected to an R, Y, or B phase of a power supply by means of high conductivity copper clamps having a circular inner geometry, each phase (R, Y, or B phase) being provided with two back-to-back parallely connected thyristors, the outputs of the thyristors being connected to each of the copper rods using three current transformers (CTs), three collecting nylon rods provided for collecting the metallic web after being coated, wherein each collecting nylon rod is capable of rotation by a drive means and is attached at the top portion of the nylon sheets, the reaction chamber having an inlet for the electrolytic solution provided at the bottom of the reaction chamber and two outlets for the electrolytic solution provided on the opposite side relative to the inlet side at the top of the reaction chamber. 